Social sciences

Emotions in organizations: the case of English university business school academics

Article Abstract:

It is an open secret that one'place of work can be, and indeed often is, a hotbed of intrigue, loyalty, betrayal, back-scratching, back-stabbing, pain, and laughter. In short, work is a home away from home. The article uses aspects of the scientific method to reveal the submerged variable of emotion in an organization. It does not put forward suggestions of how emotion should or could be investigated more fruitfully, nor does it pretend to have produced knowledge of theoretical significance. It does not even tell academics of their academic lives. Nevertheless, the results of this semiscientific (or pseudoscientific) investigation may strike a cord in its academic readers, who will smile or even chuckle as they recognize themselves in what they read. The finest comedy works because it is serious at its core. This article may amuse, but the kernel of what it has to say is in no way amusing. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Reaping the benefits of information technology in organizations: a framework guiding appropriation of group support systems

Article Abstract:

As organizations employ information technologies to facilitate business process redesign and other organizational changes, they are not consistently observing the high levels of group performance touted by proponents of this technology. To achieve the breakthrough performance desired, organizations need a clearer and more systematic understanding of how to effectively use the technologies in specific group environments. This article develops a conceptual framework for examining the interrelationships among group support system tools, group characteristics, and their joint influence on performance. Organizations can use this framework to train facilitators to more effectively appropriate group support technologies and garner more intended benefits for the firm. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)